Is a big follower count worth anything?

Only as a proxy, and a poor one. What is worth something is the proportion who see a post and act, and that number usually falls as the follower count rises.

In more detail

Judge an account — yours or a creator’s — on comments and saves against reach, not on the total. A store with 4,000 followers who buy is in a better position than one with 60,000 who scroll.

What to do about it

A platform that owns the customer relationship can change the rules whenever it likes, and has. Selling only on somebody else’s platform is renting your business.

The follower count almost never matches the sales. Engagement in the comments is a far better signal than reach.

Short-form video is the cheapest reach available right now, which is exactly why it will not stay cheap.

The mobile app angle

The point of an app in this picture is ownership: social brings somebody once, and the app is where they come back to.